Berlusconi was at the centre of a series of investigations and trials, almost all of them opened after he entered politics in 1994. In all, he faced 35 criminal court cases, but only clocked up one definitive conviction.
A sentence becomes enforceable, therefore, only once the appeals process has been exhausted. That takes several years and some alleged crimes are wiped due to the statute of limitations, which dictate how long investigations and trials can last.Berlusconi was accused of abuse of office and paying for sex in 2010 with a minor, nightclub dancer Karima El Mahroug, better known in Italy by her stage name, Ruby the Heartstealer.
Berlusconi was put in the dock again in Rome, Siena and Milan after being accused of bribing witnesses at his so-called Bunga Bunga parties to lie in the original Ruby trial. He has been cleared in each city, most recently in February in Milan.The only Berlusconi trial that ended with a final conviction was one for tax fraud, false accounting and embezzlement tied to his media empire, which was then called Mediaset.
Seven resulted in acquittals "because the allegations did not prove to be founded", including trials for alleged bribes to the tax police, bribes to judges and tax evasion. He was acquitted in one case because the judge ruled what had happened was not a crime.